Special Request.

Hats! Do you have any theatrical and/or interesting hats at home that we can borrow for a week or two? Top hats, viking helmets, etc? I have a hotdog hat that we will be using. If you do, please send them with your child on Monday morning! Thank you!

Also, has your child ever come home from school with an unresolved social issue? Have you have to talk with them about their peers and schoolmates? If so, next week’s talk with Kim John Payne will be valuable to you as parents. It is not the same talk he gave last year, but rather a whole other topic. Bridging the school/home divide is an extremely important task for us, especially as we move towards middle school. Working from a shared vocabulary and understanding will really help all of us in creating a positive, supportive, and fertile environment for these children to grow up and develop in. I would strongly encourage all of us to attend. Please see below for details. 

In The Classroom.

Well, here we are at the end of our first block. From Ancient India to Persia in just four short weeks! It’s been a fantastic introduction to our study of ancient cultures and we will be picking up with Mesopotamia and Egypt in December.

• Morning Lesson. This week we finished with the geography of Persia and continues with figure of Zarathustra. Overall, there was a good deal of writing during this block, laying the ground work for longer and more sophisticated writing this year.
• Artistic Work. We finished our work with the mandalas this week, They are currently hanging up on the front of the fifth grade classroom. Please some on in and take a look. They are fantastic!
• Geometry. This week we refined out work with shined in shapes, working from the periphery inwards to define them. This is a surprisingly challenging and demanding exercise for the children. It’s been great practice and we will work on it a few more times before we move on.
• Math. This week we continued with our review of fourth grade math, working with the multiplication of fractions, as well as working more deeply with reducing and simplifying fractions.
• Language Arts. This week for reading comprehension, we read about the armadillo, a really unique creature with some interesting features. Our grammar skills focused on direct speech, for which we used Calvin and Hobbes cartoons as a basis. Student work exemplifying this is currently posted outside of the fifth grade room
• Speech, Song, Movement. There’s been lots of work focused on the Michaelmas pageant, particularly in choreographing our fight with the giant dragon.
• Homework. Homework will not be assigned this upcoming week as well, seeing that we have a field trip on Monday and no school on Thursday or Friday.

Reminders and Other News.

• Take Home Folder. Your child will be coming home at the end of each week with a few handouts. Please be sure to take a look and engage them in a bit of conversation about what they are doing in class! Also, as always, you are welcome to come in and look at your child’s work any day after school! This week’s take home material will be…
  • Ancient Persia Writing. The students were asked to edit and correct mistakes in this essay.
  • Calvin and Hobbes Direct Speech. This was an introductory example on writing direct speech. Some children may be bringing home their own work, while others’ are still being displayed in the hallway
  • Zarathustra Poem, Zend Avesta, 7th C. BCE. We worked a bit with this poem this week, reading it out loud and putting it in our morning lesson books.
  • Math Skills Worksheet. This is some computational practice and puzzle solving from this week.
• Field Trip. Please don’t forget your permission slip for the field trip on October 3! Also, please plan on packing a snack and lunch for your child. We will be eating away from school this day. 
• Saturday, October 1. 11:00. Harvest Fest at City Garden. 
  • Pageant: Student arrival time is at 10:45 for the children to set up, put on their costumes, and get ready for the performance. All UPWS grades will be performing at the festival, so please let me know if you will be unable to attend. 
    • Clothes: If possible, please have your child wear light colored clothes to the pageant, as we will be wearing white tunics in our role. 
  • Pumpkin Sales: We are tasked with the pumpkin sale table at the Harvest Fest this year. It will be a great deal of fun. The children will be able to interact with the customers, calculate prices, take money, give change, and keep track of the till. We will need some student help setting up and tearing down as well. Here is a link to sign up your child!  Parent volunteers are also welcomed, so please add your name to the list if you would like! It is arranged so we can work in groups of five for 30 minute shifts. There are still a bunch of slots to fill, so please be sure to sign up!
• Thursday, October 6, 7:00 – 9:00. Kim John Payne: Social Inclusion and the New Rites of Passage. Unfortunately, bullying (in person and online) is a serious issue facing children today.  As much as parents try to raise considerate and kind children, they are still faced with the reality that there is a statistically high likelihood that their children will either be bullied or will intentionally exclude other children.  Kim will discuss a way of combating the problems of isolation and exclusion that he has developed over the past 24 years working with children from all over the world.The Social Inclusion approach emphasizes helping children change negative social patterns without needing to be blamed and shamed.  Rather, matters are dealt with openly and firmly but not judgmentally. This approach fosters a “telling environment” where children and parents feel free to speak up knowing they will not place someone in further danger or get the “bully” in trouble.  We will explore why certain children get picked on while others bully, how to make teasing guidelines that children understand and use, and how to facilitate discussions around social exclusion issues. Get your tickets here. 
• Wednesday, October 26. 7:30 – 9:00. 5th Grade Parent Evening. Put this on your calendars! Get a sitter! Come prepared for a fun, informative, moving, and inspiring evening! We will look a bit deeper at the curriculum in the 5th grade with the underlying theme of rhythm and harmony for the 10-12 year old.